


we make our breaks

by nightquills



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Developing Friendships, Developing Relationship, F/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Premium banter, Teasing, mentions of canon-typical violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-20
Updated: 2016-10-06
Packaged: 2018-07-25 18:03:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7542586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightquills/pseuds/nightquills
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Inquisition has survived Haven and reached Skyhold, but their work is nowhere close to being done. This new leaf may be a hard one to turn, but at least it provides Ellana a chance to try and gather her wits about her.<br/>… And maybe bother a certain Commander and get to know him a little bit better in the process.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!
> 
> The title is taken from a line in the song ["Wild Things" by Alessia Cara](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=De30ET0dQpQ). 
> 
> I'd like to give a quick shout out to my friend Gaz and [my lovely bae-ta](http://aro-ackermans.tumblr.com/), both of whom read this over and helped me out. Thanks, guys <3 (Especially to Tori, who isn't even in the DA fandom lol.)

When the Inquisition first settled at Skyhold, there was an endless stream of things that needed doing. The keep was, of course, uninhabited for an unknown age before the Inquisition found itself at its doors, and though the structures have weathered time, there are still marks to show its passing.

There was debris to clear, pathways to rebuild, and a veritable maze of underground rooms to explore, and that wasn’t counting the woes associated with the fact that they had fled here with a large amount of injured and very little in the way of supplies.

Everyone who was capable was tasked with something to do, and the days seemed to stretch one and on until they end. Even then, there still seemed to be too much work to do to justify taking the much needed respite provided by the night.

Ellana is still counted among the injured, much to her dismay. She can't deny that it's justified--she's still recovering from her wounds at Haven, and at this point there are neither enough healers or enough mages to satisfy the needs of the wounded.

Ellana is tended to meticulously, but she pushes away attempts to heal her completely when her condition is stable and improving. There are many others of which the same can not be said, and she would much rather that their limited supplies, time, and energy be expended where they could save someone else’s life.

(Healing tents still litter the courtyard where the wounded are too fragile to be moved, and she couldn't bear the thought that her discomfort might be worth more than the very lives of the men and women that defended her, defended everyone, and bought them the time to act and escape.)

Recovering as she was, Ellana couldn't help out as she desired to. Strenuous physical activity was still beyond her capabilities, as everyone reminded her when she tried to assist. It was frustrating, and Ellana was constantly fighting against feelings of inadequacy and helplessness.

She _wanted_ to help, and she certainly wouldn't mind something to take her mind off of her lingering wounds or the circumstances that caused her to sustain them. That was something she found herself facing every night, regardless.

Ellana would have loved to have the conversation and banter provided by her companions, but she wasn't selfish enough to request their presence when they were already spread so thin. Their time would be much better suited helping elsewhere.

As it was already, Cassandra and Cullen were working to fortify Skyhold’s defenses and organize all of the other workers. Blackwall, Iron Bull, and some of Bull’s Chargers had been helping with the heavy lifting associated with rebuilding. Leliana and Josephine were working to spread word of the Inquisition’s survival and re-establish their networks to secure trade lines and trade partners to keep Skyhold supplied. Dorian, Vivienne, and Solas were assisting the healers as much as they were able. Cole was doing…. whatever Cole did, and as far as she knew, the others had been helping to clear out the other spaces within the keep.

Ellana figured, then, that she must find her own way to keep herself occupied. She searched for something she could do that wouldn't put a strain on her healing body.

Eventually, this led her to the kitchens. With all but a few of the able-bodied people helping out elsewhere, the cooks were understaffed and overworked--never mind the fact that they had little to work with in the way of supplies. Frankly, they must have been working miracles to keep everyone fed as they were.

(When Ellana thinks this, she can't help but think of the particularly rough times her clan had sometimes faced in the Free Marches. The times when there were so few animals to be found, the times where the cooks had made do and made do with just scraps as they tried to feed the entire clan. They had still gone hungry.)

The circumstances were such that Ellana’s already sizable respect for the cooks had certainly increased. She knew that she was no culinary genius, but she figured that surely there must be some way that she could help them.

When she staggered up the stairs leading to the kitchen--leaning heavily on the wall to brace herself--she was greeted by the sight of frenzied workers running back and forth across the kitchen, which was near swelteringly hot from the numerous fires inside the room.

She had almost changed her mind at the sight in front of her, figuring that her limited mobility would mean that she'd probably only get in the way. Then she steeled herself and reasoned that she could at least ask if they needed help.

If the cooks said no, she could at least tell herself that she had tried.

And so she had asked, and that was how she ended up in a seat in the corner of the room, basket in her lap, peeling vegetables. She certainly wasn't going to complain. The task was monotonous enough that she could will herself into a sort of daze, but the vigilance required to keep from cutting herself meant that she couldn't be consumed by her thoughts.

Though it was chaos in the kitchens--from the moment she arrived until the moment she left--it was an organized and personable chaos. After some slight hesitation in the face of the “Herald of Andraste” and the recently named Inquisitor, the cooks had relaxed enough to allow conversation to flow during the less busy moments of the day. She was accepted into their fold easily, and soon enough she was able to share in their jokes.

Aside from the clatter of pots and pans and the crackles of the fire, there was often some song or another being sung to help pass the time along. All of those noises helped to ground her, to keep her from thinking too long on what had happened to her.

That was why, day after day, Ellana continued to visit the kitchens. She was slowly given permission to resume some of her other duties, and with that she attempted to do more and actually use her muscles. She began to do more taxing work when she could, but the reality of the situation was that she was still feeling weak and most of the work was still beyond her.

Her advisors had come to the consensus that the most important thing at the moment was to get settled at Skyhold, to make it more defensible and see that everyone was provided for. As such, she knew she wouldn't have to go out in the field for some time yet.

And aside from that, there was _still_ a shortage of workers in the kitchens. Ellana figured that she might as well spend her time where she could be useful.

Her companions had soon enough learned that the kitchens were a good place to start when they were looking for her, and it seemed that they had finally shared that piece of information with her advisors. Or, more accurately, had finally told Cullen and Josephine--Leliana had almost assuredly known already.

Ellana wasn't too surprised, then, when Cullen came in one day looking for her. The head cook, an older woman that tolerated absolutely no nonsense, strode up to meet him, pointed him towards the corner where Ellana was sitting, and then left him to resume her duties.

Cullen ambled up to her, looking just slightly baffled as to why she had taken up residence in the kitchens.

“Good morning, Commander,” she greeted him.

“Inquisitor,” he replied with a slight nod of his head.

“What can I do for you?” she asked.

Instead of giving her an answer, he asked, “What are you doing here?”

Ellana let the corner of her mouth stretch upwards as she gestured towards her basket with the knife at her hands. “Well, any fool can peel potatoes,” she said, not really answering his question.

Cullen gave a snort of laughter. “That's true enough, I suppose,” he said. His tone was an obvious attempt at returning her levity, but the tired pull at his words gave her no illusions about how much work he must have been doing. The shadows under his eyes, combined with the tense way he held himself, leant credence to that theory.

Under Ellana’s momentary scrutiny, Cullen raised a hand to rub at the back of his neck. “What did you need me for, again?” she prompted.

“A-ah, yes,” he said. “Leliana has heard word from her agents in Ferelden and Orlais. I do believe that she wanted to give us a briefing on what she has learned.”

“Alright. In the war room?”

“Yes.”

“Give me just a moment, the, and I'll be on my way,” Ellana responded, mentally preparing herself for standing up after so long a time sitting. She did so, pausing briefly to carefully stretch her limbs before walking her basket and knife over to one of the tables. “Jason,” she said, getting the attention of one of the cook’s aides, “I have to leave for now. Tell Eliza that I’ll try to be back in time to help with the dishes from lunch.”

Jason nodded, giving a smile. “Inquisitor-y business, I suppose?”

“Yes, just so. Off to be all high and mighty and inquisitive, that's me,” she said, giving a friendly wink and laughing along with Jason.

She gave a wave and then turned towards the exit that led further inside the keep, surprised to find Cullen waiting for her. He gestured for her to pass through the doorway ahead of him, so she did so.

“‘High and mighty and inquisitive’?” Cullen asked, a worn smile on his face.

“But of course,” said Ellana. “What's the point of the job, otherwise? The perks?”

Cullen opened his mouth as if to respond, but Ellana quickly added, “Don't answer that, actually. Any talk of likely dismemberment or death will only bum me out right now.”

Cullen gave a genuine laugh at that, bending into a mock bow and quipping, “Of course, Inquisitor.”

“Very good, then, Commander,” Ellana said in the most pompous voice she could manage. She swept her hand through the air in front of her. “Carry on.”

“It will be as your Worship wills it,” he said solemnly, moving in front of her to climb the staircase first.

Ellana wrinkled her nose at the title, but she couldn't help but let out the chuckles rising from her chest.

The rest of the walk to the war room was spent in a companionable silence. They took turns opening the doors for each other, and when Cullen opened the final door, Ellana made sure to send him a smile over her shoulder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope that you enjoyed it and found at least one of my attempts at humor the slightest bit amusing.
> 
> Believe it or not, this entire thing sprung up from my desire to use that dumb potato line. In case you couldn't tell already, I am a Very Serious Author™. 
> 
> You can expect further chapters to contain similar silliness... If I ever get around to writing them, lmao.
> 
> Anyways... If you ever want to bother me, please feel free to hop on over to [my tumblr](http://nightquills.tumblr.com/).


	2. Chapter 2

Cullen stood at the war table, hands braced upon the scarred wood. He was only half listening to Josephine and Leliana’s debate over the proper allocation of Inquisition resources in regards to a problem posed by Duke Something-or-Other of some land somewhere in Orlais. 

To be frank, the more political machinations of the Inquisition were outside his area of expertise. He appreciated the proficiency that his colleagues demonstrated in playing The Game, but he held no illusions about his own skills in that regard. He had no patience for discussions where one thing meant another, where every word was a veiled implication that must be chosen with the utmost care.

Cullen had always been a man that relied more on actions where his words tended to fail him, which they did so frequently. 

And aside from his general lack of interest in such politics, he had the beginnings of a migraine leeching into the space behind his eyes, making him slightly nauseous. Concentration was becoming more and more difficult, and he blearily came to the realization that he'd been staring at the table for at least the last five minutes. 

He was drawn out of his daze by the sound of the Inquisitor’s voice, which drew his gaze from where it was resting on the table’s map.

He was glad to hear her voice. When Ellana provided her final opinion, these things tended to be resolved soon after. Then he would be free to leave. 

All Cullen really wanted to do at that moment was return to his tower and bury his face in his pillow, though he was quite aware that such a respite was not to be allowed any time soon by the schedule he had set for himself today. 

Cullen forced himself to actually comprehend what Ellana was saying instead of just letting her pleasant tones wash over him, and he managed to catch most of her words. 

“--think that we should go with Josephine in this particular instance,” Ellana said. She was leaning on the table, her fingers idly toying with one of the unused markers. “How soon do you think your emissaries can reach the Duke?” 

“Weather and roads permitting, I would guess that the trip would take at least two weeks,” Josephine said after a moment of consideration. 

“Very well,” Ellana replied. “Leliana, could you send a message to an agent in the area to tell the Duke of our plans?” 

The Spymaster gave a nod. 

“Cullen, would you be able to spare some troops to escort Josephine’s representatives? More than likely they’ll have to pass through the Emerald Graves, and, as you mentioned earlier, there’s been a resurgence of the Freemen there.”

“Of course, Inquisitor. I can arrange for a troop to be ready to travel in with Josephine’s people in two days’ time.” 

Ellana gave a nod and smiled just slightly. “Alright, so the last thing I thought of settling today was--”

Cullen closed his eyes for just a moment, trying to blink back the headache, and when he opened his eyes he refocused them on the Inquisitor to at least give some semblance of paying attention. He was relatively sure that this matter would go to Leliana, so he allowed himself to zone out again. 

Unfortunately, he didn't realize that the spot of space he was absently staring at happened to be one of Ellana’s eyebrows until his attention was drawn by said brow scrunching up. And then it was too late--she had noticed him seemingly staring at her, and she had an amused tilt to her lips. 

Cullen’s cheeks flushed at the questioning of arch of her brow, which was really unfairly incriminating because he hadn't meant to stare at her. In fact, he hadn't been staring at her, he hadn't really been looking at her face at all--not that it wasn't a nice face, a very nice face, in fact, but--

Cullen cut himself off there. He forced himself to keep from clearing his throat and fidgeting, but couldn't refrain from looking away from her and focusing his gaze somewhere on the wall between Josephine and Leliana. 

After a few long minutes, he hazarded a look back at the Inquisitor from the corner of his eye. Thankfully she was no longer looking in his direction, but she still had that damned smile on her lips. 

Cullen really wanted a chance to explain. He knew that at this point, however, he would only further embarrass himself. Somehow he felt like he always ended up doing that when he was around Ellana. 

The meeting soon drew to a close, and Cullen was glad that he would have the chance to get away and try to regain the slightest bit of his dignity. 

He put mental emphasis on the ‘try’ part, because he was relatively certain that he would manage to put his foot in his mouth soon enough and then his progress would be in vain. 

Cullen was the first to the door, so he held it open for the others to pass in front of him. 

The Inquisitor was the first one to pass through, and she crossed her eyes and stuck out her tongue at him as she passed--very clearly at an angle so that Leliana and Josephine couldn't see her face--calling out a “Thank you, Commander” over her shoulder. 

Cullen couldn't help but sputter at her retreating form. Had she really just--? 

Leliana raised an eyebrow at him as she passed through the doorway, but mercifully said nothing. 

Josephine, on the other hand…. 

“Are you feeling well, Cullen? Your cheeks are rather flushed,” she said. 

“I’m fine,” he said gruffly. 

“As you say, Commander,” Josephine replied, not even trying to conceal the smile spreading across her face. 

Maker help him. The Inquisition might end up being the death of him, and not for the reasons one might think. 

Cullen kept his head down on his way back to his office. Thankfully, he didn't run into anyone else who might tease him. 

(Never mind that he had purposefully taken a route that wouldn't pass Varric’s usual haunt. That was pure coincidence and had absolutely nothing to do with the dwarf’s propensity to poke his nose--and more often than not, either his quill or his crossbow--where it was not desired.)

Of course, getting back to his office meant that Cullen had to return to his paperwork. He let out a sigh, rubbed his temples, and settled down to get to it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Cullen.... He's just so easy to tease, dammit. 
> 
> Here's [my tumblr](https:/nightquills.tumblr.com), if you want to bother me. (I say 'bother,' but I assure you that you wouldn't be a bother at all!)


	3. Chapter 3

Ellana was humming absently to herself as she walked down to the kitchen, her arms laden with dishes from lunch. She focused on putting one foot in front of the other, trying to keep the dishes balanced so that none would fall. 

Of course, that was when a voice from behind her spoke up unexpectedly. “Inquisitor--”

To which Ellana responded by jumping and letting out a shout of “Holy nug shit!” 

...Never let it be said that Ellana wasn’t eloquent and refined. Thankfully, she managed to balance all of the dishes in her hands so that none spilled to the floor, but it was a near thing. 

She wheeled around to see that the voice belonged to Cullen, who was looking at her apologetically, if somewhat amusedly. “Sorry for scaring you, Inquisitor.” 

“I think you might have just shaved a year off of my life, Commander. How do you even move around so silently with all that heavy armor? Should I put in a requisition to get you a bell?” 

“I'm more concerned with the fact that you didn't hear me--I swear that I was making at least a fair bit of noise. Should I have you do training sessions with Leliana’s agents? I’m sure that they’d be much better at the whole… Sneaking about bit than most of my current recruits.”

“I swear, I'm normally much more aware--especially in the field. You don't have anything to worry about,” Ellana assured him. 

There was a somber set to Cullen's eyes as he said, “But it only takes a single moment, Inquisitor, to take advantage of your distraction.”

She knew that he was right. If she hadn't had a large enough target on her back before, her new title was certain to only make it bigger and brighter. 

She trusted the people of Skyhold, but she knew that soon enough they would have visitors from all over coming to play visit. Leliana and Cullen would do their best to keep out or take care of spies and assassins, but she should still operate under the assumption that there would always be someone that slipped through the cracks.

And never mind when the Inquisition was finally settled and she returned to her travels… In the field, there was always a chance that the next moment could hold an ambush or an unforeseen enemy. 

The knowledge weighed all too heavily on her, once again, that the Inquisition’s ability to end this fight and save Thedas depended almost completely on her continued survival. Her prolonged recovery wasn't an excuse for inattentiveness. If she died from a single moment of carelessness and there wasn't another way to close the rifts… 

“You're right,” she said. “If it helps at all, I'd be happy to take those sessions when I’m cleared for combat again.” 

“Thank you, Inquisitor,” he said earnestly. He seemed grateful that she had actually acknowledged his concerns instead of just brushing them off. 

Ellana nodded in response. She tried to think of a joke to diffuse the tension and make things less serious, and failing that, she inquired as to what Cullen had been looking for. “Did you need something, Cullen?”

“I wanted to go over the new fortifications on the walls, just to keep you updated--if you have time, that is.”

“Alright. Can I just take these back to the kitchen first?” she said, tilting her head down to gesture towards the dishes in her arms. 

“Of course.” 

“Do you want me to meet you back at your office, then?”

“I'll go with you, if that's alright. That way we can go directly to the walls. I could actually help you with the dishes, if you wanted…?” 

“Please, be my guest,” Ellana replied, carefully holding the dishes up just slightly so that they were closer to his entirely-too-tall human height. 

He tipped his head in response and grabbed half of her load, easily balancing everything in his wide palms. 

Ellana’s arms had been beginning to tense from the way she had had to brace her muscles, and the sudden decrease in weight went a long way to alieving that tension. “Thank you, Cullen.”

“Of course, Inquisitor. Really, it’s more for my own peace of mind than anything else--we can’t have you falling down the stairs and breaking your neck just because you couldn’t see your own feet.”

She laughed. “Very funny.”

“I do try,” Cullen quipped.

“I do have a request to make of you. But it’s nothing serious!” Ellana added, seeing how Cullen’s face had become more closed off and business-like at her words. “Please, Commander, I just wanted to ask you to not call me Inquisitor all the time--I have a perfectly fine name. I promise I won't tell on you if you use it every once in awhile,” she said playfully.  

“...If you insist, Ellana.” 

“Yes, I do. Thank you for humoring me.” 

Cullen nodded. There was a couple of moments of silence as the both of them descended the stairs, Cullen first and then Ellana. Presumably so that if she did trip, she would have something a little more forgiving than the floor to land on. She took the opportunity to admire the musculature of Cullen's arms and the breadth of his shoulders. 

“I see that you’ve graduated from peeling potatoes,” he said once they’d gotten to the base of the stairs, gesturing to the dishes they were carrying. 

“Yes. They said that if I have all of these muscles, I might as well be putting them to work.” 

“...I do believe I know another way that you could do that.”

It took a moment, and then Ellana was chuckling. It quickly turned into a full blown laugh that shook her frame so hard that she nearly dropped the dishes again.

When Ellana finally looked over at Cullen, there was a hot flush painting his cheeks and the tips of his ears. It seemed that he had caught onto his unintentional innuendo, too.

“Oh, Maker,” he said. “I--I meant to say that we still have plenty to do in the way of rebuilding. You would not be turned away if you offered your assistance there.”

“Are you quite sure? I could, perhaps, be persuaded towards your other offer.” And truthfully, she wasn’t lying--there was no point in denying that Cullen was attractive. At his flabbergasted expression, she broke out into laughter all over again. 

“I'm sorry, Commander. I have such poor self control that I couldn't help myself when the opportunity arose to give you a hard time. I'm sure that you're correct--I'll ask around and see where else I can help out.”

He nodded, still seemingly at a loss for words. It made Ellana feel bad for teasing him so. 

She was about to apologize again when they finally reached the kitchen. The hustle and bustle of the food still being prepared made it difficult to carry out a real conversation unless one was standing directly at the ear of the person they were speaking with, so Ellana focused instead on depositing her dishes on the limited counter space in front of her. It was a task that required her full attention unless she wanted everything to topple to the floor. 

Cullen followed suit, and together they turned to exit the kitchen through the stairs leading to the lower courtyard. 

By the time they cross the courtyard and climb the steps to the battlements, Cullen has fended off at least half a dozen runners. Mythal knows how the man does it--if it were Ellana, she’d have likely run away and hidden herself somewhere they wouldn't be able to find her. 

Cullen seemed to have regained his ability to speak, at least. He delved straight into things, leading her along the fortifications that were underway and describing them as he walked. 

Even Ellana’s untrained eye could see the improvements that had been made, but it was obvious where the defenses were still weak. Though Skyhold itself had stood well in the face of the elements, the passage of time had nonetheless left its marks. 

The two of them walked until they came to the doors above the portcullis. Cullen held the door open for her and then passed through himself, allowing it to swing shut behind him. “Nice space,” Ellana said, looking at the room and its high ceiling. “Easy access, too,” she added, nodding towards the three doors. 

“Ah, yes. I actually wanted to tell you that this is going to be my office. If you have need of me, I’d suggest looking here first.”

She nodded consideringly. “Well, I suppose this is better than your little desk in the middle of the courtyard.”

He chuckled. “That’s for certain. It may be messy, but it has potential. I even have a new desk already.” He gestured towards a cloth covered shape in one corner. “It was already here when we arrived. Somehow it’s held up--still in great condition.”

“I’m glad. It seems like it would be a pain to try and get a new desk up here, anyways.”

“Indeed. All the stairs in Skyhold are not exactly conducive to moving furniture.”

Ellana can only imagine the tragedy when Josephine discovers that for herself as she tries to decorate the keep for visitors. She hopes she won’t be around to deal with that. 

After a moment, Cullen led the way out of the office. They walked along the rest of the walls and passed through the rest of the towers before coming to a stop at the stairs leading down to the garden. 

Cullen paced for a moment before turning towards her, looking her straight in the eye. “Strategically speaking, we have a comparative advantage over any attacking forces. We have the higher ground, and the cliff is all but impossible to climb--meaning there's only one real point of entry. However, our inaccessibility means that we could easily be starved out during a longer siege. It's a blade that could easily be turned against us... Which is why I want to divert some of our forces further down the valley.” 

Ellana nodded. 

He continued, “They'd be able to scout out the terrain and see which direction our enemies are more likely to come from--and our response time would be quicker as well. Worst comes to worst, they can fall back to Skyhold.”

She hummed in thought. “And it'll help with crowding. Skyhold is large, but I suspect it won't be able to hold everyone if we keep expanding as we were before Haven.” 

“Agreed. We’ll eventually have to address the housing issue, but at the moment that’s not our priority. My main concerns right now are repairs and trying to build our defenses... That being said, I'd like to bring in specialists to help us create more siege weaponry. I was thinking that ballistae would prove useful if we’re to deal with a dragon again.” 

Ah, yes. The dragon. Ellana had been successful in not thinking about it since her nightmare last night, but now the beast was again in the forefront of her mind. She could almost feel its rancid breath puffing against her face, the putrid scent of it heavy in the back of her throat. 

Not pleasant thoughts, by any measure. She shook her head to clear them from her and made a noise of agreement.

“That’s all that I had to tell you, Inqui--Ellana.” 

The use of her name was enough to bring a smile to her face. “Alright. Thank you, Cullen.” 

Cullen nodded and made to leave, and Ellana quickly spoke up as a thought came to her. “Wait--if you’ve another moment?”

He paused and turned back to her. “Yes, of course. What is it?”

“I’d just like to apologize for earlier. I’m sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable with my teasing. I hope you don’t think I’m trying to give you a hard time; that’s just how I tend to interact with everyone. I’ll stop if it makes you uncomfortable.” 

Cullen’s gaze on her seems all too intense for a moment, and then he looks away and raises a hand to rub at the back of his neck. “Thank you, Ellana. But I’m… I’m not offended, or anything. You remind me of one of my sisters, actually. She’d tease me just as much, if not more. I never--”

At that moment, a runner comes up the stairs, panting heavily. “Commander. Sorry to interrupt, Ser, but you’re needed at the gate. Lieutenant Faust says that it’s about--” 

“Yes, I know what it’s about,” Cullen said, a frown twisting his features. He looked back to Ellana. “I’m sorry, Inquisitor, but I have to go.” 

“It’s alright,” Ellana reassured. 

Cullen gave a nod and then he was off, following the runner down the stairs. 

Ellana watched him leave for a moment before turning to look out over the wall. The sun was bright that day, and the light reflecting off of the snow-covered mountains seemed glaring and cold. 

As the renovations at Skyhold continued, it was becoming easier and easier to forget that they were nestled away in the Frostback Mountains, isolated from everything. Ellana was reminded now. 

“I will not allow the events at Haven to happen again,” Cullen had said. 

She wanted to believe him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> @ Cullen: In an effort to avoid directly stating that you kind of like it when she flirts with you, you instead compare the girl that you're kind of attracted to to your sister? Probably not the best way to go about your romantic relationships, just saying.... 
> 
> This chapter ended a little more somberly than I thought it would. At this point, though, I was just tired of looking at it. I hope you guys enjoyed it? I don't know how it holds up to the last chapters. 
> 
> ...Anyways. Here's my [my tumblr](https:/nightquills.tumblr.com) if you want to come and yell at me about Dragon Age. (Please come and yell at me about Dragon Age.)


End file.
